Album of the Year
by loveyourchaos
Summary: Eli Goldsworthy, an uninspired musician, finds himself returning to his music after meeting Clare Edwards, an aspiring journalism student at NYU. Although Eli was drunk inside of a ladies' room stall the first time that they met, the two instantly fall in love upon finding each other after Clare's evening caring for him. This is how their story begins.


Hi there!

I haven't posted anything for some time now and I recently developed some inspiration for a new story. I want to thank **Degrassi-love3** for reading this over and correcting my small mistakes. You should go read her stories, because they're fantastic.

Enjoy the first chapter of Album of the Year!

* * *

The weekend had finally arrived, which meant that students living on or near the NYU campus were going to relish in the freedom granted to them for the next forty-eight hours. The bars would be open late and the clubs would be packed, but there was one place in particular that was the local hotspot for those who preferred the 'underground' scene. Though it was considered a pizza restaurant of sorts, you would still be able to listen to local artists trying to stake their claim in the music industry by performing to those who would come down to watch.

Studying journalism in the hopes to land a job writing for the New York Times, Clare Edwards looked forward to the weekend for the sole purpose of viewing all of the talent that lingered inside of Geppetto's pizzeria. Many times she would sit in her usual booth, with her best friend Alli, and wonder why a lot of these musicians didn't already have records released.

"I still can't believe she hasn't been picked up yet," Clare complained to her best friend. Although, Alli had already heard this from her numerous times, every weekend since the young girl had started playing her music at Geppetto's, actually. Rolling her eyes at Clare, Alli reached for another slice of the pizza they ordered. "I mean, her music is so relatable and poetic. Kind of like a cross-breed between Fiona Apple and Adele."

Taking a bite out of the untouched slice she set on her plate, Clare continued with her mouth half full, "Watch Alli, one day she is going to be famous...and we'll be able to say we admired her music prior to the fame."

With another roll of her eyes, Alli looked up to the stage just as the performer was finishing her last song. "Thank you again everyone," the young girl announced with a wave. "My name is Allison Young, and I will be here next week." As the young girl packed up her guitar and stepped off the stage, Alli took the opportunity of silence and turned to her best friend.

"You should do that you know," Alli announced to Clare, nodding her head towards the stage.

Mid-bite, Clare politely covered her mouth and looked at her with wide eyes, "P-perform?!" she shrieked. She swallowed with an audible gulp, "Alli, you joke about how I'm tone deaf _all_ of the time."

Giggling ferociously now, Alli paused to take a breath, "No silly! I meant that you should write about music. Kind of like..." she paused to find a way to phrase it correctly. "Like a 'this person is amazing, they need a record deal, buy their music and listen to it' kind of thing," she finished, waving her hand in the air dismissively.

Clare had never thought about this however. Music was something she loved and admired, but could she really write about it?

Breaking her free from her thoughts, Alli bumped her shoulder with a small laugh, "It was just a thought, silly girl." Clare sheepishly smiled at her, suddenly in love with the idea of providing recognition to such talented musicians. Taking a quick sip of her drink and wiping her mouth with a napkin, Alli turned to Clare, "Well, I better go. Dave said that he wanted to go to a late showing of some lame action movie tonight. Are you going to be okay getting back home?"

Clare gave her friend a look and waved her off with her hands, "Alli, I'm a big girl...I think I know how to get home."

They both giggled before Alli grabbed her bag and slid out of the booth, "You're sure?"

"Go!" Clare pointed to the door with a smile.

Raising her hands in defense, Alli turned to leave, "Alright, Alright."

Once Alli was gone, Clare felt a little uncomfortable sitting by herself in a place surrounded by so many other teens and their friends. Deciding to leave, she set a few bills on the table for their server and headed for the ladies room before heading out. Opening the door, she heard the sound of someone violently puking inside of a stall. She was fully aware that the place she loved to spend her weekends in served alcohol, but she could never understand why anyone would find this to be the proper place to get fully drunk. Alli was always telling her she was too nice, but for some reason she felt obliged to help this poor stranger get home. Opening the stall however, she was not expecting the scene that was displayed in front of her. There was a young man, maybe her age, hugging the toilet for sweet life with his dark hair matted down from sweat. For a second she thought she was in the wrong restroom, but soon remembered there not being any urinals near the sink.

The young man looked so helpless and young, with his pale skin and luminous green eyes. He looked up at her for a brief moment and attempted a smile, before gaining a strained look and dipping his head back into the toilet to release some of the alcohol he had consumed earlier in the night. Once he stopped and settled his cheek onto the rim, Clare bent down and looked into his eyes, "Do you need anything?"

He met her eyes, but looked down and around the floor for something, she wasn't sure. "Yeah," he answered. "I think I spilt my drink."

She rolled her eyes and giggled down at him. "Of course you did," she teased, but he was too drunk to admire her playfulness. "Here, why don't you come with me?" she asked. Seeing no movement on his part, she stood up and set her hand out for him to take, "I can take you home."

Suddenly the thought of sleep appealed him to no end, so he lazily slammed his palm against the handle to flush the toilet and reluctantly took her hand. She helped pull him up from the ground, but he was a lot heavier than he looked; the alcohol weighing him down. "Okay, okay," she cooed, placing his arm over her shoulders and her arm around his waist to help him balance. He leaned on to her more as they exited the restroom, eventually resting his head onto her shoulder. Luckily Clare didn't park too far from the entrance, because she wasn't too sure how much longer she could have carried him. Opening the door to her car, she helped the boy take a seat and get buckled in. Once he was settled, she squatted down and gently brushed the hair out of his eyes, "What's your name?" she asked him.

He blinked a few times before looking up at her, "Eli Golds-" he hiccupped. "Worthy," he finished, with a small smile. This made Clare laugh, because in this moment, he seemed more of a child than a young man - curious, playful, and silly.

"Okay Goldsworthy," she giggled, "I need you to stay up and direct me to your house, unless you live on campus...?" She asked.

He laughed then, like her question was the funniest thing in the world. Curious, she lifted a brow at him. "Okay," he laughed again, "But I have no idea where I fucking live."

There it was, the reappearance of the drunken man using language that made her nose crinkle in slight disgust and her self awareness of the situation she has put herself into. "_Of course_ you don't," she sarcastically replied, releasing a breath of annoyance. She had no idea what to do now, but could not help but regret going into the washroom when she did. Had she just waited until she got home, she would be sound asleep in the comfort of her heavy down comforter by now. Instead, she was responsible for some guy she didn't even know. However, he was very attractive and somewhat intriguing...she shook her head from such thoughts and closed his door before opening her own. "You know," she started, buckling herself in, "I've never seen someone so lost."

Eli sighed heavily and leaned his head back onto the headrest, "Yeah, well..." he released a tiring yawn mid-sentence. "I've never felt so found," he finished, before closing his eyes slowly.

Clare shook his arm before he could fully go to sleep though, "Hey, hey!" she shouted.

He turned to her and groaned, "Ugh...What?!"

She narrowed her eyes and pointed at him, "I'm going to take you home with me, but you have to keep quiet and leave first thing in the morning, okay?"

"Here," she handed him an unopened water bottle from her backseat, "Drink this." He smiled and nodded at her, consuming the entire bottle quickly before settling back in his seat and knocking out for the long car ride out of town.

"Ugh," she groaned to herself as she pulled out of the parking lot and onto the highway out of the city.

* * *

Driving home, Clare found herself occasionally sneaking glances at the mysterious boy leaning against the window of her passenger side door. She felt inclined to know him, to want to spend time with him, to kiss him. But every time she would conclude that possibility, she would shake her head and again focus on the road. As she turned the ignition off and released her seat belt, she suddenly realized Eli was asleep and too heavy for her to carry into her house by herself. She didn't want to wake him, for he looked so serene, but there was no way of getting inside without his help. So she hesitantly patted his arm and muttered a quiet, "Eli."

No response.

So she tried it again, but a little louder, "Eli."

No response.

At this rate, she wasn't ever going to get him inside and she certainly didn't want to leave him to sleep uncomfortably in her small car. So Clare heavily shook his arm and yelled out a loud, "Eli!"

Finally, he turned over and groaned, "Hnnngg?"

"We're here, but I need you to carry yourself inside...you're too heavy," she told him. He groaned again, but reached for the handle and pushed the door open. Getting out herself, she ran over to his side of the car and helped him get out, much like how she helped him out of the ladies restroom earlier. As they made their way up to the front door, she stopped them both, "My mom is home and asleep, so you have got to be quiet...or else she will kill us both," she warned.

This resulted in a fit of laughter on his part, "You live with your _mom_?" he asked between laughs.

"It's cheaper than paying rent," she hissed. "Now...shut up," she demanded.

With Eli still quietly giggling on her side, they managed to make it up the stairs and into her bedroom without getting caught. She closed her bedroom door and turned to see him sitting on her bed, pulling his shoes off and tugging his Dead Hand shirt over his head. Before she could mention anything though, she found herself admiring his toned chest. She was too busy staring and he was too busy watching. Now that his stomach was nearly empty and he managed to get some sleep while she drove, he had sobered up some. He smirked at her with raised brows.

"I-I guess we should get some sleep?" she stammered. She was nervous and he was curious. She had been kind enough to help him and brave enough to allow him into her home; for that, he was grateful. He was certain that he would have been stuck sleeping on the floor of that restroom tonight.

"I can take the floor?" he suggested to her, wanting to be polite.

She bit her lip and moved her way towards the bed. Taking a seat, Clare sheepishly looked up and into his eyes, "Or...you can share the bed with me?" she suggested. She had no idea what she was doing, offering to share the same bed with a man she didn't know. This wasn't like her. It wasn't like they were going to engage in anything physical of course, but this was still something she had never even offered to her long time boyfriend in high school.

He smirked at her and kissed her cheek, "Thank you..." he dragged out, not knowing her name. How had he not known the name of the beautiful girl taking care of him?

She gave him a warm smile, "Clare, Clare Edwards."

Then she did something neither of them was expecting. She slowly leaned over and connected their lips.

* * *

The next morning, it wasn't the bright sunlight reflecting off of Clare's very yellow bedroom walls or even the sound of Clare's mother loudly clearing her throat that woke both of the teens up from their deep slumber. It was the sound of Clare's bedroom door slamming shut that caused both Eli and Clare to jump off of the bed in a fright, noticing Helen near the door with her arms crossed over her chest and a mean scowl on her face.

"M-mom!" Clare stuttered out, completely overwhelmed by the situation. She didn't expect for her mother to be home at this hour, let alone peak into her room. "What are you doing here?"

"Clare Diane Edwards," her mother nearly shouted, too loud for anybody's liking. "Why do you have a boy in your room?"

Clare didn't know what to say and decided it would be best to _not_ explain the events of last night. Eli had no idea what he was doing in this situation. Surely he hadn't slept with this girl, because he could barely remember the kiss she granted him with. He reached up to scratch behind his neck, a habit he's always had when nervous or uncomfortable. Clare's mother was burning a hole into him with her eyes and Clare had turned to him with a pleading look on her face. "I should go..." he dragged out, unsure of himself. But before either woman could object, he grabbed his shirt from the bed, held it up to cover his chest, and quickly fled the room.

He barely made it down the stairs, throwing his shirt over his head, before he heard shouting from upstairs. "What was he doing in your room, Clare!" he heard her mother scream.

"We were just _sleeping_ mother," Clare shouted, "God, we weren't doing anything!"

Tuning them out and heading for the door, he spotted a guy in a plaid flannel sitting on the couch, snickering towards him. "Dude, she is in _so_ much trouble," he laughed, shaking his head.

Eli rolled his eyes at this and left the house, pulling his phone from his pocket and dialing his best friend. "Adam!" he exclaimed with a sigh of relief. "Dude, can you pick me up?"

After sitting on the curb of Clare's house for nearly twenty minutes, listening to the loud shouting coming from inside, he heard the front door slam. Turning to investigate, he spotted her standing there in the same clothes from yesterday, her face in her hands. Once she looked up, he smirked and gave her a small wave. Smiling, she waved back and started to descend the small steps towards the sidewalk. She took a seat next to him, their arms touching, but neither of them could find anything to say.

Just as Eli opened his mouth to say something, they both heard the lyrics of Dead Hand in the air. Eli's best friend Adam pulled up to the curb, unaware of the interruption he was placing upon the two confused teens. "Dude, Eli," he shouted out the window, "Where did you disappear to last night and why are you all the way outside of..." he paused then, witnessing a girl beside Eli. "Town," he slowly finished.

Eli widened his eyes with a warning look and subtly nodded his head towards Clare. "I'll just..." Adam rolled his window up then, giving the two some privacy.

"Sorry about him," Eli apologized, both of them turning to look at Adam drumming his hands on the steering wheel to his music. They both giggled briefly, "I just...needed a ride back to the city and you were kind of busy." He reached behind him to rub the back of his neck for the second time this morning.

Clare noticed this as well, assuming it was a nervous habit of his. She had no idea what to say. She had kissed him out of impulse last night and they had slept together in the same bed, her bed. "It's okay," she muttered, causing him to look up and into her eyes. "He looks like a good guy," she observed.

"Yeah, Adam is a great guy," he beamed. They were quiet for a moment before Eli spoke up, "Thanks again, for last night."

She smiled at him, "You're welcome." She looked down with a light blush cascading her cheeks, remembering. "You're very amusing when intoxicated," she commented.

He smirked her way, nodded, and started heading towards the passenger side of Adam's car.

She wondered to herself if he was going to just leave her like this. "See you around?" she shouted, over the blasting music coming from inside of the vehicle.

"Guess you will," he replied with a smirk, before getting in and closing the door.

* * *

It had been nearly a full week and the weekend was arriving soon again. Neither Clare nor Eli had forgotten the night they had spent together, and surely not the following morning. In fact, all Clare could think about was Eli and how she wasn't smart enough to even get a phone number from him. Every time she was on campus or roaming the city prior to heading home, she would find herself searching for his dark hair and all black attire. The same applied to Eli. He was so busy remembering small details of the night to even pay attention in any of his classes. Meeting Clare was the best thing that had ever happened to him, because she gave him inspiration for new material. If he decided to skip a class or two, he was too busy scribbling down lyrics at his bedroom desk and if he actually made it to class, he was too busy trying to remember details of the night to pay any attention to his professors. He was so obsessed with finding Clare again, that he found himself unintentionally searching for her cinnamon curls; even startling a few young girls on campus when lightly grasping their bicep.

Walking through the quad located in the center of the campus, Eli spotted a flyer advertising an open mic night at Geppetto's. That's when the idea popped into his head. If he went to the open mic and played the new song he has been working on, maybe she would be there to hear it. That was the only lead he had on this girl, so that was the plan. Writing down the name of the manager sloppily on the palm of his hand, Eli gathered his things and made his way to the pizzeria.

"Okay, so you'll go on at eight," the owner told Eli backstage. "You can leave your things back here and we'll call you up to the stage when it's time for you to go on."

"Sounds good," Eli assured the owner, before he went back towards the kitchen. He wanted to sound confident to be here, but in all honesty, he was a nervous wreck. He could not stop his hands from shaking and his heart from pounding in his chest. He kept thinking that we would mess up in front of everyone, since he hasn't performed any of his music for almost a year now. The thought that she could be here, waiting to listen to each musician tonight...well, that nearly made him go into cardiac arrest.

Eli looked out to the crowd from behind the curtain and spotted her, sitting in a booth with a small group of friends. She had come and she would hear his song. He gasped and threw the curtain back. "You can do this," he assured himself over and over again. It became a mantra of sorts, and he was too focused on encouraging himself that he didn't hear the owner call out his name.

"Eli Goldsworthy," the owner called out again. "Where are you kid?"

Taking a deep breath, Eli shakily grabbed his guitar and headed for the stage. Upon walking up, the owner sighed with relief and stepped off the stage, leaving the mic for Eli. He took a seat on the stool and introduced himself, "Hi, my name is Eli." He placed the strap of his guitar over his shoulder and looked up, meeting eyes with Clare, "This one is called Blue Eyes."

Clare didn't expect to see him again so soon. After searching for him everyday since they met, here he was, performing a song. She had no idea he was even a musician, for she had never seen him play here before. So when the owner announced his name, she set her slice of pizza down and stopped talking with her friends, turning to look up at the stage with ears wide open.

After he introduced himself, he met eyes with her and started strumming on his guitar. This song, it was called Blue Eyes and she was sure it was about her; for her. Her heart was pounding in her chest as she heard him begin to sing. His voice was just as beautiful as his features.

Both Eli and Clare never broke eye contact as he continued to sing her his song. His eyes were illuminated in the spotlight and it was like there was no one in the crowd other than her. All of his nerves had dispersed upon seeing her beautiful blue eyes again. Eli made a mental note to talk to her after he finished his song. He wanted to take her out, get to know her more, and maybe if he was lucky, kiss her again. That was the only detail of last weekend that he fully remembered. Her lips were so soft, warm, and gentle. He neared the last chorus of the song, suddenly anxious to speak to the girl he has been fascinating over for days now.

_Cause Blue Eyes_

_You are all that I need_

_Cause Blue Eyes_

_You're the sweet to my mean_

As he finished the song with the ending verse and a final strum of his guitar, Eli slowly stood up, breaking eye contact with Clare for the first time since he stepped on stage, and leaned in towards the mic. "Thank you," he addressed towards the audience, over their claps. "My name is Eli Goldsworthy, thanks for listening and I hope you have a great night." He gave one final wave and headed backstage to pack up his guitar and gather his things.

Clare turned back into her seat and faced her group of friends once Eli stepped off the stage. He was such a talented musician and his song was so beautiful. The fact that he locked eyes with her the entire time he was playing was intimate enough to place a permanent blush cascading lightly over her cheeks. She really wanted to head behind the curtain where all of the musicians warm up and wind down, but she knew it was accessed only to those with talent and she unfortunately did not; in the music industry, anyway. It wasn't until she heard her classmate, Jenna, declare how attractive Eli was that she broke free from her thoughts to tune into the conversation more.

"I mean, did you _see_ him Alli?" she asked exaggeratedly. "He was so hot!"

Clare turned to view Alli's reaction to Jenna's childish behavior, "Sorry Jenna," Alli shrugged, "But there was nothing there but a bunch of dark clothing and a messy head of hair."

"Oh, c'mon Alli!" Jenna persisted more, before quickly turning to Clare. "Clare, you thought he was hot right?" she asked. "Tell me you think he's hot," Jenna pleaded.

Clare was fuming by this point. The fact that Jenna was viewing Eli, _her_ Eli, in a superficial way made her want to tell the young blonde off. But, she was not that type of person and Jenna was someone she could not avoid, between the two classes they share and having the same circle of friends. So, with more of an attitude than she intended, Clare hissed over the table, "Yes Jenna, Eli is a very attractive young man with more than just looks. Unfortunately for you, there is no appreciation towards them." As she sat back in her seat to cool off, glancing at the entire table's surprised reaction to her fit, she heard the clearing of a throat. As not only Clare, but everyone at the table, slowly turned their heads to get a glimpse of the figure standing before them, Clare gasped.

Eli was standing there with a wide grin on his face, looking down into Clare's eyes, "Hi Clare."

There was silence in the air, caused by Clare's embarrassment of the situation. She was 99.9% certain that he overheard everything that she just spoke about him, but that measly little 0.01% was trying to assure her that maybe he didn't hear her hissed whisper towards Jenna. Eli on the other hand, was too busy soaking this in. He could not get enough of this girl and then to hear her declare how attractive and talented he was only fed the flame more. He was standing there, admiring how pink her cheeks have gotten and how flustered she was that he heard what she had told her friend across the table. Not getting a response from her yet, he tried again, "How have you been?" he asked.

She looked up from her lap, where she was playing with her hands, "H-hi." She wanted to die right now, but instead looked up at his adorable smirk, "I've been good, how about you?"

He nodded his head a little in confirmation of her answer, "Busy." He nodded towards the stage, pointing back over his shoulder with a thumb, "How did you like the song?"

He wasn't sure why, but he needed to know whether or not she enjoyed the words he had written about her, for her. Eli normally never cared what people thought of his work, because it was his and nobody else's, but for some reason her opinion was the only one that he cared to hear.

"I loved it," she gently spoke. "It was really beautiful Eli. Did you write that all by yourself?"

He was so happy to hear that she loved the song he wrote her, even causing him to let out the small breath he had been holding in anticipation of her answer. "Yeah," he replied. "I uh," he absentmindedly reached up to rub the back of his neck, "I started it last weekend actually, and I've been working on it everyday since."

He was nervous as hell, and he was not aware of how Clare had known this. She watched him rub his neck briefly, but once he noticed her eyes on his arm, he slowly rested it back at his side. "Anyway," he continued, suddenly very aware of her friends who were still keeping their focus on the exchange between the two. "I was hoping maybe we could grab a coffee or something sometime?"

Clare smiled and quickly nodded her head, "Sure Eli, I would really like that."

There was a long pause in the conversation, both Clare and Eli mesmerized by the presence of one another. So much in fact, that they didn't notice the very intrigued Alli glancing expectantly between the two.

"Well, are you going to ask for her number or not?" Alli exclaimed loudly, breaking the two from their trance.

"Alli!" Clare hissed.

"No, she's right," Eli replied with a smirk.

He reached into his back pocket and handed his phone over to Clare, "Here."

Reluctantly, Clare grabbed his phone and added her number; Alli looking over her shoulder with a wide grin.

"There," Clare said as she handed the phone back over to Eli with a small smile.

Eli briefly glanced down at the new addition to his contact list with a smirk, before looking back up and meeting eyes with Clare.

They were goofily grinning at one another before Eli heard the light strumming of a guitar and a few movements coming from the stage. Noticing another performer was about to start their set, he picked up his guitar case and leaned in towards her ear so she could hear him over the sound of the music. "I'll text you about that coffee...Blue Eyes."

Eli felt her shiver from his words, slowly pulling away, and nodded with a smirk before exiting the restaurant. As Clare watched his figure proceed towards the exit, she couldn't help but smile for the fact that he had asked to see her again, and the song he sung tonight was _definitely_ for her.


End file.
